How to Escape Stress With Yoga? What Is Yoga?

By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Lana_Waterfall]Lana Waterfall

How many times have you felt stressed out? When was the last time you felt like the world was crashing down on you? How would you like to just get away from everything and just relax your mind, body, and spirit?

Millions of people all over the world have a massive amount of stress in their lives. They do not know how to escape the monotony life throws their way. Well, Yoga teaches you how to escape every day and to heal your mind and strengthen your body releasing the pressures of every day life.

Yoga is an ancient art of emotional well being while keeping your body fit through a combination of stretches and focused mediation. When you ask people, "what is yoga?" most will tell you its a new age way of stretching and manipulating body parts into positions that are not normal or made for the human body to do. Sorry to tell ya', but that is far from the truth. Masters of the Yoga art will tell you that Yoga has natural healing properties that alleviate most of your common ailments from the common cold to back and joint problems and issues.

Yoga Masters from every corner of the world will agree that yoga helps clear the mind and calm the body to a state that leads to wellness unachievable through other conventional means of exercise programs.

For hundreds of years this concept has been around. People from all walks of life have used Yoga and meditation for fitness and relaxation and proven its ability to accomplish it.

Yoga can be learned in a group class or in today's busy world, most would rather learn in the privacy of their own home through the study of books and video information.

The different aspects of yoga are as follows;

Hatha Yoga - was introduced by Yogi Swatmarama back in the 15th century India. He also compiled the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. Hatha Yoga, being best known in the west, gives reason why there are so many different definitions of yoga. There are two main objectives, one being the practice of one posture that is comfortable for long periods of time. More postures help develop inner meditation techniques. The second objective is to bring health and energy to the body and mind by opening the energy channels.

Bikram Yoga - was developed by Bikram Choudhury. It is the 26 Postures Sequence. The goal here is toward general wellness and performed in studios that are heated, (heated studios) and helps facilitate deeper stretching as well as injury prevention while releasing stress and tension. It stimulates and restores health to all of your muscles, joints and organs of the body. It is also proven that the 26 postures systematically work every part of the body and maintain optimum health and maximize function. Bikram Yoga should always be practiced under the guidance of a certified Bikram Yoga Teacher at one of the affiliated Bikram Yoga Studios. The reason behind this recommendation is because these studios are designed and built is such a way that you always get the proper heating, (104F,) which helps to optimize you and your postures.

Now that you know who developed these Yoga practices and what they are about, let me just explain a few more of the areas that go into Yoga.

Yoga Asanas - means Postures. The literal meaning is "Seat." This is the seated position you normally see the Karate Masters meditate in and serves as the stable posture for prolonged meditation. Asanas are suppose to purify and strengthen the body and control the focus of the mind while you are comfortable, firm yet relaxed.

And Finally; yoga also has the benefits of Weight Loss, Breathing, Stretching, Relaxation, and total mind - body harmony.

To learn more about What is yoga? go to http://www.what-is-yoga.com/

Article Source: [http://EzineArticles.com/?How-to-Escape-Stress-With-Yoga?-What-Is-Yoga?&id=6245018] How to Escape Stress With Yoga? What Is Yoga?